


A Good Dad

by whitecrossgirl



Category: Criminal Minds (US TV)
Genre: David Rossi is a dad, Father-Daughter Relationship, Father-Son Relationship, Gen, Rossi is everyone's dad fight me on this
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-05
Updated: 2021-03-06
Packaged: 2021-03-18 20:27:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,203
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29863617
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/whitecrossgirl/pseuds/whitecrossgirl
Summary: David Rossi never expected to be a dad. Somehow he wound up with a literal football team's worth of kids.He wouldn't change it for the world.
Relationships: The BAU Team & David Rossi
Kudos: 16





	1. A Good Dad?

**Author's Note:**

> A series of drabbles of Rossi being everyone's dad. Joy will be included in this

David Rossi wasn’t a father. 

He had been. Once. But there wasn’t a word for a man who had been a father and then no longer was. It had taken a long time to recover but he convinced himself that he would never be a father. Not only that, but he would never be a  _ good _ father. Good fathers were always there for their kids, dispensed wisdom and practical life advice, grilled burgers on the barbecue, taught his daughter to drive and gave his son his first beer. Good fathers were loving, supportive, they accepted their kids without question; loved unconditionally. He didn’t know if he had it in him to be a father, much less a good one. 

Yet that was the humour of life. He had never expected to be a father but somehow, he adopted an army of kids along the way. Grown up kids who were also his colleagues. Grown up kids who, due to abuse, abandonment or bereavement had never had a good father, or rather, one who was still with them. It wasn’t planned. They never expected it to happen and he definitely had not wanted to be their defacto father figure, much less their dad. By the time they all realised it; it was too late.

He was their dad, they were his kids.

And none of them wanted it any other way. 


	2. ...is there for his son

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Set before the ending of Memoriam.

**_Will:_ ** _ You know what, you ain't got to do nothing, Uncle Phil. Ain't like I'm still five years old, you know. Ain't like I'ma be sitting up every night asking my mom, "When's Daddy coming home?", you know. Who needs him? Hey, he wasn't there to teach me how to shoot my first basket, but I learned, didn't I? And I got pretty damn good at it too, didn't I, Uncle Phil? _

**_Uncle Phil:_ ** _ Yeah, you did. _

**_Will:_ ** _ Got through my first date without him, right? I learned how to drive, I learned how to shave, I learned how to fight without him. I had FOURTEEN great birthdays without him. He never even sent me a damn card! TO HELL WITH HIM! I ain't need him then and I don't need him now. _

**_Uncle Phil:_ ** _ Will... _

**_Will:_ ** _ No, you know what, Uncle Phil? I'ma get through college without him, I'ma get a great job without him, I'ma marry me a beautiful honey, and I'ma have me a whole bunch of kids. I'll be a better father than he ever was, and I sure as hell don't need him for that, 'cause ain't a damn thing he could ever teach me about how to love my kids!... How come he don't want me, man? _

_ The Fresh Prince of Bel Air  _

* * *

Rossi had had a range of thoughts and feelings about the young doctor. Initially he had been irritated by the wide-eyed speed-talking agent who bombarded him with questions and reeled off statistics without being asked. However as he got to know him, Rossi had a growing respect for him. The kid was tougher than he looked, had a greater sense of resilience than it seemed and could both keep a level head in a crisis and understand when they needed to play into an unsub’s delusion. His golden rule of not prying too much into his colleague’s lives meant he had always assumed that Doctor Spencer Reid must have had a loving supportive family. What parent wouldn’t be proud of their genius child? Several degrees and doctorates, an FBI profiler who had caught numerous criminals and saved countless lives and still only in his mid-twenties. What parent would have wanted to miss out on any part of his life?

Well, William Reid, it seemed. 

He understood more than anyone how difficult divorce could be. How a loving relationship can fall apart and the challenges of seeing eye to eye with someone you had wanted to spend your life with. None of his divorces had involved children but he liked to think that he would have fought to see his kids as often as possible; had he had any to gain custody of. That meant it perplexed and disgusted him even more to wonder how Willaim Reid had not only abandoned his mentally ill wife but also left his young son in the care of his mentally ill wife and it hadn’t been because he had left Las Vegas and hadn’t wanted to pull Spencer from his home. He had stayed in the city. He just hadn’t bothered to see his son. There were no reasons, no excuses that seemed good enough to explain why he had abandoned his only child.

He and Morgan had balanced challenging and questioning William Reid as well as stopping Spencer from reaching over and strangling his possible murderer-father. Even though he wanted to strangle the man too. How dare he try and act like he cared about his son when he hadn’t seen him for years? Hadn’t called or wrote or even visited. A Google search didn’t exactly make up for years of abandonment. He knew that Spencer was hurting and trying to hide it. By the time they closed the case and were on their way back to DC to meet JJ’s new baby, Spencer had tried and failed to hide how troubled he felt. 

Rossi glanced down the jet at Spencer who sat on the long seat, hugging his legs as he stared vacantly into space. Morgan had his headphones on and seemed to be trying to sleep as Rossi stood and walked down to Spencer. 

“How are you, kiddo?” Rossi asked Spencer who jumped slightly and shrugged his shoulders. 

“I don’t know,” Spencer replied. He waited for the inevitable joke about him not knowing something but instead Rossi sat down next to him. 

“That’s understandable. This is something that has been in your head for a long time but maybe now, Riley can rest easily.” Rossi explained as Spencer shrugged. “Look Reid, I can’t imagine what it was like dealing with your father for you but what I can tell you is that any real father would have been proud to have had you as a son.”

“Except for my real one.” Spencer said bitterly. “Sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry, you’ve kept this inside for a long time. Maybe it’s time to let it out. If you want to talk about it, I’m here for you kid.” Rossi reassured as Spencer yawned. “Get some sleep, we’re headed for the hospital as soon as we land.”

“Thanks Rossi,” Spencer said as he lay down on the seat. Rossi patted his shoulder and returned to his seat. He wasn’t surprised to see Morgan sitting up, wide awake. Rossi sat down and held up a finger.

“Not a word.” Rossi warned and Morgan smirked. 

“Have five. You’d be a good dad.” Morgan replied. Rossi shook his head wryly. He doubted that he would have been a good dad. He just would have been there for his kids. Surely the bar for being a good dad couldn’t be that low? Well, maybe in Reid’s case and experience, that was where the bar was set. Kid needed a dad and if he somehow helped, well, it would be good enough for him.


End file.
